AMD announces Project SkyBridge chips and Android plans

AMD has announced new SkyBridge chips that will combine ARM and x86 cores and has finally outlined its Android plans.

Project Skybridge represents what the company is calling “ambidextrous computing” and introduces 20nm ARM and x86 SoCs that are pin-compatible with each other and therefore be interchanged according to the user’s preference.

This would mean a single motherboard that would provide the plumbing for ARM and x86 cores that can be changed without hardware repercussions.

“AMD now takes a bold step forward and has become the only company that can provide high-performance 64-bit ARM and x86 CPU cores paired with world-class graphics,” said new Chief Executive Rory Read.

AMD also confirmed it will support Android on its 64-bit ARM-based chips starting in 2015. It will only bring android to AMD architecture though, rather than x86 that is used in Linux and Windows PCs.

ARM processors are used in the majority of tablets and smartphones and the new ARM and x86 chips part of Project Skybridge could appear in super slim tablets in the future as well as embedded devices.

That’s according to AMD’s GM of Global Business Units Lisa Su anyway, who said the company isn’t focusing on smartphones because AMD wants to focus on devices that can offer a strong graphics experience.